Borders on St. Charles

This is relatively old news, but I thought it was important enough to comment on.  Borders is converting the former Bultman Funeral Home, located at the corner of  St. Charles and Louisiana Avenue, into a 24,000 square foot  store.

Bultman Funeral Home (from asergeev.com)

Naturally, the Times-Picayune article noted the potential impact the store would have on New Orleans' independent booksellers, particularly Octavia Books and Garden District Book Shop, but in my opinion the possible negative affect on these stores is outweighed by the benefits of the proposed project.  Right now is not the time to filibuster the renovation and return to commerce of a historic building in a critical neighborhood.  Remember, it wasn't more than five years ago that this same controversy was escalating due to the impending construction of the Wal-Mart on Tchoupitoulas, and Magazine Street today is as vibrant as ever (and this is post-Katrina). 

Strong, local, independent businesses have an uncanny ability to withstand competition from national chains, based on service, familiarity, and meeting the needs of niche markets, and I would expect the same from both stores.  Besides, as noted in the TP article,  residents of Orleans Parish already travel to Jefferson Parish to shop at Barnes and Noble and Borders there.  It is incredibly important that those tax dollars stay in Orleans Parish (5.00% of the 9.00% total sales tax goes to the Parish, with the remaining going to the state).  Borders reported revenues of approximately $5.5 million per US store (which each averaged about 24,800 square feet) in 2006 , which, if achieved at this location, would create $275,000 in tax revenue annually for the Parish  (which should be almost enough to pay for the new trash cans that New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin is so smitten with).

Beyond tax dollars, the development will provide employment (according to their website, Borders provides healthcare benefits to all employees) for the local community, and will anchor a run-down intersection in the Lower Garden District, bringing much-needed traffic (foot-, or otherwise) and commerce to the immediate neighborhood.

It is critical that the Lower Garden District, which is in a precipitous position, remains a viable, safe, stable neighborhood linking Uptown with the CBD.  That section of the City cannot be allowed to degenerate into a dead zone, and the contagion of Central City cannot spread further riverside than it already has.  A 24,000 square foot Borders anchor is a good start, and it would be expected that new developments are announced in the surrounding area in the next year, as the development takes shape.

That the developers, Stirling Properties, have stated their intention to preserve the historic structure is vital.  One can only hope that Stirling does not bait-and-switch the community with this project, and follows through on their stated plan.  Unfortunately, a brief review of their portfolio does little to alleviate any apprehension regarding the final outcome of the project, as past projects of the firm appear to largely consist of national big boxes and shlocky suburban concrete-and-glass office parks.

With that said, it will be up to the community to follow and engage in this process, and ensure that Stirling and Borders do the right thing for New Orleans, not just their bottom-line.